Training Kohanim for the Holy Temple: The First Fruits Offering

[edu]

A practice drill for bringing the first fruits (Bikurm) to the Temple.
As they get more funding maybe they will make their drills much closer in resemblance to the "real thing".
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3lYS3IjkZN8&spfreload=10

[edu]

http://bible.ort.org/books/pentd2.asp?ACTION=displaypage&BOOK=5&CHAPTER=26
Deuteronomy » Chapter 26

First Fruits
26:1   When you come to the land that God your Lord is giving you as a heritage, occupying and settling it,
26:2   you shall take the first of every fruit of the ground produced by the land that God your Lord is giving you. You must place it in a basket, and go to the site that God will choose as the place associated with His name.
26:3   There you shall go to the priest officiating at the time, and say to him, 'Today I am affirming to God your Lord that I have come to the land that God swore to our fathers to give us.'
26:4   The priest shall then take the basket from your hand and place it before the altar of God your Lord.
26:5   You shall then make the following declaration before God your Lord:
'My ancestor was a homeless Aramaean. He went to Egypt with a small number of men and lived there as an immigrant, but it was there that he became a great, powerful, and populous nation.
26:6   The Egyptians were cruel to us, making us suffer and imposing harsh slavery on us.
26:7   We cried out to God, Lord of our ancestors, and God heard our voice, seeing our suffering, our harsh labor, and our distress.
26:8   'God then brought us out of Egypt with a strong hand and an outstretched arm with great visions and with signs and miracles.
26:9   He brought us to this area, giving us this land flowing with milk and honey.
26:10   I am now bringing the first fruit of the land that God has given me.'
With that, you shall set the basket down before God your Lord, and you shall then bow down before God your Lord.

26:11   You, the Levite, and the proselyte in your midst shall thus rejoice in all the good that God your Lord has granted you and your family.

Commentary:

first
  The owner would mark the first fruit to ripen by tying a piece of papyrus reed around it (Bikkurim 3:1).

fruit...
  Only the seven species mentioned in Deuteronomy 8:8 (Menachoth 84b; Rashi). The first-fruits could only be brought to the Temple after Shavuoth, which is called the 'feast of first-fruits' (Exodus 23:16, Numbers 28:26; Bikkurim 1:3).

basket
  A food basket (Deuteronomy 28:5), tene in Hebrew. The baskets were made of peeled willow twigs (Bikkurim 3:8}, but the main law here is that the first-fruits must be brought in a vessel (Sifri).

the site...
  See Deuteronomy, 12:5.

officiating at the time
  That is, in the shift (mishmor) officiating at the time (Abarbanel).

and say to him
  At that time, the owner is holding the basket on his shoulder (Bikkurim 3:6; Yad, Bikkurim 3:12).

take
  As God's agent (Chizzkuni). Some say that the priest now takes it to wave it in the prescribed manner; see note on Exodus 29:24. (Rashi; see Sukkah 47b, Makkoth 18b; Menachoth 61b).

place it
  Some say that at this point the basket is placed before the altar, and then it is put down a second time as mentioned in Deuteronomy 26:10 (Sifri; Midrash HaGadol; Rash, Bikkurim 3:6; Abarbanel). Others translate 'place' here as 'wave' (Sukkah 47b) and render the verse, 'The priest shall take the basket ... and wave it before the altar ...' (cf. Tosafoth, Makkoth 18b, s.v. U'Man). Or, 'The priest shall then wave the basket from your hand, and before placing it before the altar ... (26:5) you shall make the following declaration (Tosefoth Yom Tov, Bikkurim 3:6; cf. Yad, Bikkurim 3:12). Or, 'Before the priest takes the basket from your hand and places it before the altar ... (26:5) you shall make the following declaration' (Shenoth Eliahu, Bikkurim 3:6).

You shall then
  After taking the basket back from the priest (Rashi on Deuteronomy 26:10). Or while waving the basket (cf. Yad, Bikkurim 3:12; Tosafoth Yom Tov on Bikkurim 3:6). Or before the priest takes the basket (Shenoth Eliahu, Bikkurim 3:6).

ancestor
  Jacob. Or, Abraham (Rashbam).

homeless Aramaean
  (Rashbam; Sforno; cf. Chizzkuni on 11:17). Or, 'a poor Aramaean' (Ibn Ezra, Chizzkuni; Bachya), or, 'a persecuted Aramaean' (Radak, Sherashim). Jacob is referred to as an Aramaean because this was the homeland of his ancestors. Or, 'my ancestor was exiled to Aramaea' (Targum Yonathan; Ralbag), or, 'my ancestor abandoned Aramaea' (Septuagint). Or, 'An Aramaean [tried to] destroy my ancestor [Jacob],' where the Aramaean is Laban (cf. Genesis 31:22,29; Targum; Sifri; Saadia; Rashi).

visions
  (Targum; Chizzkuni; Septuagint). Or, 'terror' (Abarbanel).

set
  Literally (Yad, Bikkurim 3:12). Or, 'wave' (Sukkah 47b). Thus, some say that it was waved twice (Sifri; Rash on Bikkurim 3:6; Tosafoth, Makkoth 18b), or put down twice (Shenoth Eliahu on Bikkurim 3:6; Lekach Tov; Midrash HaGadol).

before God
  On the southwest corner of the altar (Yerushalmi, Bikkurim 3:4; Yad, Bikkurim 3:12). See Leviticus 6:7 (Malbim).

bow down
  Literally, 'prostrate yourself' (Ralbag; Tifereth Yisrael on Shekalim 6:1).

Levite
  Who must also bring first fruits of his produce (Rashi).

proselyte
  Who has the same status as any other Israelite, and can even make the above declaration, since he is a spiritual descendant of Abraham (Yerushalmi, Bikkurim 1:4; Yad, Bikkurim 4:3).